Last year, Aston Villa sporting director Monchi hoped to reunite with full-back Marcos Acuna in the Midlands. Monchi had brought Acuna to Spanish club Sevilla and tried to sign him once again, with the player himself pushing for the move and Unai Emery publicly expressing admiration for a "very good" player.
However, Sevilla believed that Villa's offer was insufficient, and their refusal to budge left Acuna frustrated. Six months on, the Argentine continues to be linked with Emery's side, who are weighing up whether to sell Lucas Digne in the summer.
Digne is among Villa's highest earners at £120,000 per week, and the club recognise that offloading him could be a smart financial move. Acuna could be his replacement, and there's been some encouraging news on that front.
Acuna gets the green light he's wanted
According to Vamos Mi Sevilla, Acuna is now free to leave this month. As he enters the final 18 months of his contract, the La Liga club have decided that the time is right to let him go, with all parties now trying to "seek a transfer". If no move materialises in January, he's expected to depart in the summer.
Acuna has apparently endured a somewhat tumultuous relationship with the club, strained further by their decision to reject Villa's last bid. As such, the door is open for Emery to make a move.
Acuna fits the bill for Emery, but discipline a worry
Acuna, who's now 32, joined Sevilla from Sporting in 2020 and has since racked up 135 appearances for the club, with the highlight of his stint no doubt the 2022/23 Europa League triumph. Even though he missed the final through suspension, he earned a place in the competition's team of the season.
That capped off an incredible year that had also seen him win the World Cup with Argentina, but this season has been markedly more difficult. Sidelined for 10 league matches through injury, he's been limited to eight top-flight appearances thus far.
When fit, though, Acuna clearly fits the stylistic bill for Emery. As noted by The Athletic, the Spaniard wants a left-back who can "essentially become a quasi-left-winger in possession", and his veteran target has played over 150 games in advanced positions on the left flank.
It was in the 2021/22 season that he truly displayed his potency as an offensive full-back, placing fourth in the league for crosses attempted on a whopping 178, and finishing second for completed crosses into the area (27). That production helped to earn him a place in the league's best XI.
Still, there will be big boots to fill if he succeeds Digne. In this year's Premier League, only Newcastle's Kieran Trippier (6.0), Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (4.2) and Spurs' Pedro Porro (4.1) have posted a higher expected assist figure than Digne (2.7) among all defenders, and he also ranks fifth in his position for key passes (29). Only Trippier has found a teammate with more crosses (14 vs 13).
One area of concern around Acuna is discipline. No player in Europe's top five leagues was sent off more last season (three times), and he's amassed a whopping 33 yellow cards since he arrived at Sevilla. He could put Villa in tricky positions if he gets himself either dismissed or suspended, which would be a source of frustration for fans.
